Top 100 Classic Rock Songs

To say Black Sabbath’s second album, ‘Paranoid,’ is influential is like saying the Beatles were a “pretty good band.” The 1970 LP basically created the template for heavy metal, what with the trifecta of ‘War Pigs,’ ‘Iron Man’ and the superlative title track.

If Pete Townshend of the Who had his way, the album that bore the band's classic anthem 'Baba O' Riley' (often mistakenly referred to as 'Teenage Wasteland' based on the song's famous chorus) would have sounded completely different. Townshend originally planned to top the band's previous project, 1969's 'Tommy,' with an even more ambitious rock opera concept called ‘Lifehouse.' ...

It's hard to believe there was a time when Guns N' Roses weren't absolutely huge. But in reality, if it weren't for the second chance 'Sweet Child O' Mine' granted them, the world at large could have missed out on a lot of great music. And yes, some drama.

With Journey's ‘Don’t Stop Believin’’ earning a well deserved slot on our Top 100 Classic Rock Songs list, keyboardist Jonathan Cain gave us the story behind the origins of the track, which he crafted with guitarist Neal Schon and vocalist Steve Perry. Cain says that the ...

Lynyrd Skynyrd's 'Sweet Home Alabama' is still flying the southern rock flag high, thirty-eight years on.

In 1969, America was waist-high in a muck of chaos, politically and emotionally. In just two and a half minutes, Creedence Clearwater Revival spit out enough venom via 'Fortunate Son' to disarm, or at least disorient the enemy.

By early 1974, Bruce Springsteen's career was stuck. Although his first two albums were critically acclaimed, he had trouble finding an audience outside the Northeast corridor where his live shows were knocking crowds dead every night.

It's terrifyingly easy to think of a rock music landscape without Ozzy Osbourne's towering presence. Instead, and seemingly against his own efforts, we have the mighty 'Crazy Train' blasting out of every football stadium in the nation on Sunday afternoons.

Released in April of 1971, 'L.A. Woman' was the final album the the Doors made with Jim Morrison. Within three months of its release, the singer would be dead. Sad as his lost is, talk about going out on a high note!

We can't say for sure the last time we heard 'La Grange,' ZZ Top's ubiquitous musical calling card. But if it wasn't today, it was probably yesterday, and it could have reached us from a hundred different sources.